Food handling apparatus



Dec. 17, 1935. R C, GEIGER 024,282

FOOD HANDLING APPARATUS Filed July 5l, 1931 5 Sheec,s-Sheetl l ATTORNEYSD@.17,1935.A y R, c, GEIGER 2,024,282

FOOD HANDLING APPARATUS Filed Julyll, 193i" 5 sheetssheet 2 90 47 l/ /0/48 Y 45 l @i115 a, g

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FOOD HANDLING APPARATUS Filed Ju1y`31, 1931 5 sheetsheep s INVENTOR c.BY wh/w no ATTORNEYS Dec. 17,1935. R Q GElGER 2,024,282

l FOOD HANDLING APPARATUS Filed July 31, 1951 5 Sheets-Sheet -4lINVENTOR BYMCW ATTORN EYS DCC. 17,1935. v R, Q GElGER 2,024,282'

' FOOD HANDLING APPARATUS Filed July 3l, 1931 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 ATTORI.YS

Patented Dec. 17, 1935 UNITED'STATES PATENT oFFl'cEroonnarrliszAPPAI-:A'ros i Y Russell C. Geiger, Troy, Kitchen AidManufacturing Company,

Chio, a corporation of Ohio Ohio, assgnor to The Troy,

Application July 31, 1931, serial No. 554,255'

8 Claims.

machines for mixing, beating and stirring foodstuffs and for generalutility work about the kitchen.

It is an object of this invention to provide a food handling apparatushaving an electric drive and a variable speed transmission, which issim-l ple and compact in construction, highly effective and well/balanced in operation, attractive in appearance, lightin weight, andrequiring a min;-

mum amount of space.

It is a. further object to provide a change vspeed transmission andcontrol therefor which are compact, provide for easy manipulation, aordquiet operation,

and are effectively enclosed.

` It is a further object to'provide such a machine with an effectivebowl support and with simple and effective bowl raising and loweringmechanism.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent from a study of thedetailed description, the accompanying drawings,

In the drawingsand the appended claims.

present invention;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the machine with a portion of the cover platebroken away; Fig. 3 is a partial vertical sectional view on the line 3-3of Fig. 2?

Fig. 4 is an enlarged vertical sectional view on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a sectional view of a detail of the transmission mechanismtaken on the line 5-5 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a 6-6 of Fig. 1;

Fig. -7 is an end ratus looking from i the bowl removed;

horizontal sectional View on the line elevational view of the appatheright hand of Fig. 1 with Fig. 8. is a detailed sectional view on theline 8-8 of Fig. 6.

Reference is herein made to the copending application of Herbert, L.Johnston and David A.

Meeker, Serial N0. 277,616, filed May 14, 1928,

and claims apparatus which discloses lustrated a preferred'embodiment ofthe invention,

there is shown a base Ill upon which is mounted an upstanding pedestal II. Fastened'to the pedestal by bolts I2 is a housing I3 whichl isextended beyond the pedestal and y overhangs the base. The housing isvopen on top and a removable cover plate I4 is bolted thereto in asuitable manner as, for instance, by bolts I5. A bowl I6 is adjustablysupported from the pedestal and cooperates with a beating element I1which is 5 mounted upon a planetary shaft I8 through a bayonetconnection I9. 'Shaft I8 is driven byv a motor through Isuitable speedreducing and change speed gearing to cause the beater element to actupon material placed within the bowl. i0 Within the lower portion of thepedestal is mounted a motor comprising a stator 20 anda rotor 2 I. Therotor shaft 22 is substantially vertical and is supported at its lowerend in a bearing 23 formed in the end cap 24. Suitable bolts 25extending into the pedestal supportthe stator within the pedestal andlikewise removably support the end cap 24, the pedestal forminga housingfor the motor parts. A cover plate 26 is bolt- Aed to the end cap bymeans of bolts 21 and is 20 also formed with a flange 28 for retainingthe bearing 23 in its seat. The base'is open at this point and is ofgreater diameter than any of the motor parts so that access may befreely obtained to the motor. By removing plate 26 the lower 25 bearingmay be withdrawn and if it is desired to remove the whole motor, it isonly necessary to remove the several bolts 25 and then the end cap,rotor and stator are removable. A suitable switch 29 is mounted in thebase for controlling 30 rthe motor circuit.

The motor shaft extends upwardly and a suitable fan 30 may be mountedthereon. A'web 3| is formed inthe pedestal and a bearing 32 positionedtherein 'for journaling the upper end of 35 the shaft. The lower bearing23 may conveniently serve as a thrust bearing to support the weight ofthe rotor and shaft. v

A driven shaft 34 is mounted within a bearing 35 formed adjacent thelower portion of the 40 top housing member I3 and is vpositioned invertical alignment with the motor shaft 22. In order t make allowancefor inequality and irregularities in the aligned shaft a pin and slotconnection is provided between the two shafts in the form. of a sleeve36 pinned to the driven shaft, a pin 31 positioned in the sleeve andengaging a cooperating slot 33 in the upper end of the motor shaft. Inthis way, lslight variations in the two shafts will not cause excessivewear. A sealing washer 39 of any suitable conventional form is attachedto the lower end of bearing 35 trally located bearing 6|.

bearing is assured of adequate lubrication.

A worm 45 is provided adjacent the upper extremity of shaft 34 andengages a worm gear 46 which is mounted upon a counter shaft 41supported in bearings 48 formed in the housing. 'I'he counter shaft alsocarries two `spur gears 50 and 5I each fastened to the shaft.v

The change speed transmission preferably takes the form of a tumblergear mechanism. The tumbler gears are carried by a rocking frame mountedupon a main driven shaft 60 which extends longitudinally through thevupper housing I3 and is journaled therein'in a cenmotor shaft lie inacommon vertical plane located substantially centrally of the foodhandling apparatus.

The tumbler gear mechanism comprises a cage or rocking frame 62 withinwhich rotates a gear 63, this gear being splined on the main drivenshaft 60, and the cage being free to move on the shaft, both-rotatablyand axially. The cage also rotatably supports two driving pinons 64 and65 of diiferent diam- `eters, which are fastened to the same shaft 66,

the smaller pinion 64 being constantly in engagement with gear 63. Asillustrated, the pinion 65 is in driving engagement with gear 5I sovthat power is transmitted from the motor through the worm 45 and wormgear 46 to counter shaft 41, gear 5|, pinion 65, shaft 66, pinion 64 andgear 63 to the main driven shaft 68. It will be understood that a changein the driving connection is brought about by swinging the tumblermechanism about shaft'60 and adjusting it axially thereof to causepinion 65 to engage gear 50 for a higher speed drive, or to cause pinion64 to engage gear 59 for a still highi er speed ratio.

A handle 16 is positioned on the cage of the tumbler mechanism andextends through a slot 1I. formed in the top cover plate I4.' 'I'hisslot is formed as indicated in Fig.` 2 and comprises two long legs 12and 13 and a short leg 14, all

joined together by a passage 15. A spring 16,-

the handle is such that it flts closely within the slots but withoutbinding. `In order to change the driving connection from that shown, thehandle 10 is moved by the operator against the actionv of the spring outof slot 13, which motion causes a swinging of cage 62 about shaft 60 andconsequently the disengagement of pinion 65 from gear 5|, thus movingthe parts out of low speed. Then the handle is given a movement at rightanglesv to its rstmovement which causes an axial slide of the cage alongshaft 60. 'Ihe handle may here be dropped either into the shorter leg 14which then will cause the intermeshing of pinion 65 with gear 59 toprovide an intermediate speed, or it may be given a further axialmovement and dropped into slot 12 to cause the engagement of pinion 64with gear 50 to provide high speed.

A projecting pin 11 is positioned on the cage within the housing andprojects through a slot in a plate 18 fastened to the interior of thehousing wall. 'Ihis plate has slots 19, 80, and 8| formed therein,corresponding to the three This shaft and the.

aoaaasa 4resiliently held in such position by spring 16.

These bolts terminate directly below the cover 10 plate I4 and.Aconsequently are accessible when the cover plate is removed. A curvedstrip of spring metal 88 is mounted so as to resiliently engage each ofthe bolts 82, 83, and 84 to provide means for locking the bolts inadjusted position. This 15 provides. in effect a single automaticlocking member for all the stops, which gives resiliently when any oneof the bolts is turned by the application of pressure as by a screwdriver to permit adjustment thereof without disassembly 20 or looseningof any of the other parts, and which at the termination of theadjustment automatically locks the adjusted part in its new position.Spring 16 urges the pinions of the tumblergear mechanism into engagementwith gears 50 and 25 5| and the individually adjustable stops provideindependent adjustment of the depth of mesh of the gears in each of thethree speeds, Whereby quiet and eiicient operation of the gearing isattained. A sliding sealing plate 85 is car-,3o

ried by the handle 10 `and is pressed upwardly againstv the innersurface of the housing by a spring 86. This plate is of sufiicient widthand length to close the slot 1I in the cover during the shifting of thechange vspeed mechanism 35 and in alloperating positions of the shiftinglever'and tumbler gear frame. A sealing washer 81 may be fastened to theunder side of the cover I4 about the opening 1I, the plate 85 bearingagainst. this washer.- 40 Mounted upon the extended end of the drivenshaft 60 is a beveled gear 9|) which is in driving engagement with abeveled gear" 9|. Gear 9| is i fastened to a vertical shaft 92 which isjournaled in a bearing member 93. This-bearing member is 45 providedwith screw threads at its lower portion and a nut 94 is positionedthereon and draws the bearing tightly against a hub 95 formed in thehousing. A third beveled gear 96 is in mesh with gear 9| and has anextended shaft portion 91v 50 which is supported within an outwardlyextend-y ing hollow portion 98- of the housing. The' extension 98 isprovided with an outwardly flaring taper 99 and the shaft 91 has aninternal bore throughout a portion of its length which is 5.; squared asindicated at `IIlIl to provide a driving connection for an attachment.Thumb screw |0| is provided in the tapered portion, adapted to fastenthe attachment and hold it while it is operated by shaft 91. Theattachment may be for 60- instance a chopper, a slicer, an ice creamfreezer, or any other form of household appliance which may beadvantageously driven through the motor and transmission gearing of thismachine, it be- 'ing understood that the attachment is provided 65r onan annular extended web I I of the housing I3 by means of bolts |I2.Pinion HI8-is adapted to An internal ring gear I|9 is removably mountedengage ring gear IIB. This is a conventional arrangement now well knownin food handling apparatus providing for a rotating motion yof shaft I8about its own axis compounded with a `second rotary motion about theaxis ofshaft 92,

giving the so-called planetary movement to the beater and beater shaft.A-spring metal ring or drip cup ||3 is removably fastened to the sideywall of ring gear v| I0, and has an inturned lower trough-like portionwhich serves to prevent dropping of lubricant from the gearing into thebowl below.

The bowl I6 is supported from an adjustable v bowl support comprisingtwo outwardly extend'- ing arms |20 which are fastened to a verticallyadjustable yoke |2|. Spaced guide rods |22 mounted at their lower endsin base I0 and at their upper ends in housing I3 serve to guide 'theyoke in its verticalmovemen The adjusting mechanism for the bowl supportcomprises an extended rod |25 carried by the yoke member and extendingwithin the interior of the pedestal through a slot |26 formed therein.Rod |25 is siidably received within a block |21 which in turn isprovided with a hole into which fits a rotatable pin |28. The pin ismounted in a crank arm |29 and so arranged that in response to theturning of the crank arm about its axis, the block will be raised orlowered and, sliding along the rod |25, will cause the raising or thelowering of the bowl support and bowl supported thereby.

A handle |30 fastened to the crank arm projects .through the pedestaland is conveniently placed so as to be made easily available to theoperator. The shaft of the handle is journaled within an eccentricsleeve I3I .providedwith a circumferential groove |32 anda hexagonal endportion |33 adapted to be rotated by means 0f a suitable tool. A setscrew |34 mounted in the body of the pedestal servesto hold theeccentric in any given position. When it is desired to change the rangeof movement of bowl and yoke, the set screw may be loosened and theeccentric -then rotated to either raise or lower the handle the crankarm |29 has passed across vertical dead center position, and the weightof the bowl Vand yoke acting downwardly withrespect to the crank armholds the parts in raised position. A spring pressed stop pin |35 isprovided within the housing adjacent the uppermost limit of travel ofthe yoke and bowl to serve as a yieldable stop against which the yokeabuts in raised position to hold the parts against looseness on theframe and prevent rattle during operationof the mixer. The arms |20 areprovided at their outer extremities with upstanding pins |39 adapted toreceive openings in brackets |36 -mounted on opposite sides of the bowlI5. A spring slip |31 carried by the slide or yoke. |2| 'engages aprojection |38 on the rear of -the fbowl to resiliently hold the bowlinthe usual manner against tipping and against looseness and lrattle onthe bowl support.`

One 'prevalent objection of machines as heretofore generally constructedfor household use resides in the leakage of lubricant to a certainextent from the transmission casing along protruding shafts or otherparts above the bowl and thence into the foodstus within the bowl.Wherea simple rotary movement is imparted to 5 the beater shaft, thismay beminimized by the provision -of a stuffing box through .which thebeater shaft extends, but only with the further objection of increasingthe frictional resistance to rotation -of the shaft and the powerconsump- 10 tion of the machine. With a planetary beater shaft,additional problems arise-and these may be further addedto whereanattachment coupling is provided which opens out ofthe transmissioncasing adjacent to or above the planetary. 15 The present inventionprovides a'. construction of machine which not only obviates thisobjection oflubricant leakage into the foodstuffs with a planetary typeof gearing, but also enables the transmissioncasing to be at all timespacked 2o full of grease to provide adequate lubrication of the gearingor drive.

As shown more particularly in Fig. 3, the lower f portion of thevertical shaft 92 supporting the planetary is provided opposite thelower end of 25 bearing 93 with a reverse spiral groove |48 lwhich is socoordinated with the direction of rotation of shaft 92 as to operateduring the rotation of the shaft as a pump to force back lubricanttending to leak down between shaft 92 and bearing 30 93. This providesin effect a lubricant seaLwithout increasing the frictional resistanceto rotation of the parts. While it has been heretofore considereddesirable to provide for lubricant seep'- age between such a shaft andits bearing, with 35 resultant leakage of such substantial quantities oflubricant onto the planetary as to result in the accumulation ofquantities of lubricant therein as will inevitably overflow intothefoodstulfs With continued operation, I have found that the 40 anyleakage of lubricant into the foodstuffs with only infrequent cleaning,even though the machine is operated over extended periods of time. Thisis particularly important in connection with household machines of thischaracter. .55 The attachment coupling shaft 91 is likewise providedwith an exterior reverse spiral groove |4| positioned adjacent thesquared end of this shaft and cooperating with the surroundingattachment hub 98 to force back any lubricant tend- 60 ing to seepalongbetween the shaft 91 and hub 98. A coiled exible springA |42 may beseated in this groove to further insure against lubricant getting beyondthe end kof shaft 91 when it is then enabled topass out the flared endof hub 65 98. .The spring |42 is of suchl size as to seat snugly withinthe groove of the shaft, and yet is spring pressed outwardly against thewall of the hub. A similar spring indicated at |43 may be provided inthe groove |40. K A food mixing 7o machine is thus provided having aplanetary beater shaft andan attachment coupling .in which adequatelubrication of the relatively movable parts is eifected,.and which atthe same time this win be caught by the drip ring H3 45 l for'theprotruding ,parts including the planetary and attachment hub whichprevent objectionable leakage of lubricant to the exterior thereof,while avoiding any undue frictional resistance to movement of therotatable or movable parts.

.The invention thus provides a food handling apparatus which isparticularly suitable ,for mod- .ern household `use where not only thefeature of utility must be'considered but also those of size, weight,ease of operation, and cost. 'I'he present apparatus is. so designed andarranged that the operating parts are enclosed within a relatively smallhousing making the device extremely compact. At the'samc time, themounting of the motor adjacent the base of thel pedestal, utilizing thespace within tliepedestal for the motor parts and the pedestal itself asthe housing for the motor parts, contributes to the compactness of themachine', while stabilizing the machine and lowering its center ofgravity, this being of particular value in small size table machines ofthis character.

motor and to the change speed mechanism, thus rendering any repairs orinspection a simple matter. In addition'to these very materialadvantages', the apparatus is .also of great utility and is adapted tobe used to drive a number of different attachments and for operatingupon a number of different materials.

While the forms of apparatus herein described constitute a preferredembodiment of the invention, it is to be understood-that the inventionis not limited to this precise form of apparatus, and that changes maybe made therein without departing from the'scope of the inventionwhichis defined in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a food handling apparatus, the combination with a pedestal, ahousing mounted on the pedestal, a bowl support adapted to receive abowl, and a foodtreating shaft supported from the housing adapted tocarry a stirring element,

of a motor drive, unit comprising a rotor and a stator mounted withinthe pedestal adjacent the lower portion thereof, the pedestalconstituting the motor frame, the motor shaft being substantiallyvertical, a web formed integrally with said pedestal and positionedabove and adjacent said motor, a bearing for the shaft of said rotor insaid web, a driven .shaft extending in driving relation from said rotorshaft into said housing, a bearing for said driven shaft positionedvabove said web and adjacent` the lower portion of said housing, andmeans for operatively connecting thedriven shaft with said food treatingshaft.

2. A food handling apparatus comprising a base having an openingadjacent one end thereof, a pedestal mounted on said base overlying saidopening, a housing mounted-on the pedestal, a bowl support on thepedestal adapted to receive a bowl, va planetary shaft supported fromthe housing adapted to carry a stirring element, a motor drive unithaving a substantially vertical motor axis removably positioned in thepedestal including rotor and stator. parts adapted to be removed throughsaid opening in the base, the

-said pedestal constituting the motor frame, and

speed reducing and speed change gearingV in the housing for operativelyconnecting said motor with said planetary shaft.

3. In a food handling apparatus, the combination with a base, a pedestalstanding on said base,

a housing mounted on top of said pedestal, a vbowl support. and aplanetary shaftsupported in saidl It is further arranged so that accessmay be easily had both to the driving housing and adapted to can-,yastirring element,

of a motor drive unit positioned within saidY speed mechanismadapted-1tohave variable en-.

gagement with lsaid driving-gears a main shaft driven through saidmechanismf'and interconnections between said fmainshaft andsaidplanetary shaft, said motor driven worm and said change speed mechanismbeing located within said housing. f, y

4. A food handling apparatus comprising a 'pedestal having alowerportionof.- larger diameter and an upper-,portion of smaller diameter separatedby a transversely extending web, a housing mounted on top of saidpedestal, a bowl support adapted to'receive a bowl, a food treatingshaft supported from said housing adapted to carry a stirring element, amotor drive unit vwithin saidlower portion ofthe pedestal, means 'andjournalled in said web, a driven shaft in axial alignment with saidmotor shaft, a separable connection between said motor shaft and saiddriven shaft to provide for driving of the latter, said driven shaftextending upwardly and being jeurnalled in said housing, and operativeconnections within said housing between said driven shaft and said foodtreating shaft providing for the driving of said food treating shaft.

5. A food handling apparatus of the character describedcomprising a baseprovided with an opening therein'adjacent one end, a hollow pedestalpositioned on said base over said opening, said pedestal having anintegrally formed transversely extending web positioned intermediate theends thereof,y said web dividing the -pedestal into an upper and a lowercompartment, a motor positioned in the lower compartment, the pedestalconstituting the motor frame and the motor extending over said opening,with its axis substantially vertical, an endcap lying within the openingin said base and containing a lower bearing for the motor shaft, meansfor detachably lcon'- necting said end cap directly to the pedestal toprovide for removal of the cap and the motor through the opening in saidbase, a bearing positioned in said web forming an upper 4bearing for themotor shaft, said shaft extending into said upper compartment, a foodtreating shaft and driving connections between said motor shaft and saidfood treating shaft providing for operation of s'aid food treatingshaft.

6. A food handling'device 'of the character described adapted to performbeating, mixing, and

stirring operations and the like, comprising a base' bowl supportadapted to receive a bowl, a planetary shaft mounted in said housing andadapted to carry a stirring element, a motor drive unit positionedwithin and removable from said pedestal through said opening in the basewith the pedestal constituting the motor frame, the motor having itsaxis substantially vertical, and driving connections between said motorand said planetary shaft. s

'1. A food handling device of the character described adapted to performbeating, mixing, and stirring operations and the like, comprising a basehaving an opening adjacent one endv thereof, a pedestal positioned onsaid base over said opening, a housing supported entirely on saidpedestal in overhanging relation with respect to said base, a bowlsupport adapted to receive a' bowl, a planetary shaft supported from thehousing adapted to carry a stirring element, a motor drive unit having arotor and a stator with its axis substantially vertical, 'an end'cap forsaid motor within said base providing a bearing for the motor shaft,said end cap and the rotor of said motor being removable through saidopening in the base While maintaining the operative ase semblyof saidplanetary shaft and said bovvl support.

8. A food handling device of the character described for performingbeating, mixing, and stirfood treating shaft.

ring operations and the like, comprising a vbase having an openingadjacent one end thereof, a pedestal having an open end, and supportedover the opening in said base, a housing mounted on and supported solelyby said pedestal in over- 5 hanging relation with respect to the base,power take-oil? attachment coupling means located on said overhangingportion of said housing above the base, a food treating shaft alsosupported from saidhousing, motor drive means located in 10 saidpedestal and removable through said open end and through said opening inthe base, said drive means being -located substantially below saidoverhanging housing to provide a low center of gravity, and means-forming a drivingconnec- 15 tion from said motor drive means throughsaid pedestal to said power take-off means and said RUSSELL C. GEIGER.

CERTIFICATE oF CORRECTION.

Patent No. 2,024,282. December l?, 1935.

RUSSELL C. GEIGER.

It is hereby certified that the name of the assignee in the abovenumbered patent was erroneously written and printed as "The Kitchen AidManufacturing Company" whereas said name should have been written andprinted as The KitchenAid Manufacturing-Company, of Troy, Ohio, acorporation ofOhio, as

shown by the records of assignments in this office; page 3, firstcolumn, line 6s, for "slip" read clip; and that the said Letters Patentshould be read with these corrections therein that the same may conformto the record of the case in the Patent Office. i

' Signed and sealed this 25th day of February, A. D. 1936.

Leslie Frazer (Seal) Acting Commissioner of Patents.

